BEIJING: Nissan Motor's China venture has filed a lawsuit against a Chinese soccer team backed by Alibaba Group Holding and Evergrande Real Estate Group, alleging that it wrongfully pulled the automaker's logo from team jerseys.

A Nissan spokeswoman confirmed there was a lawsuit but declined to give details.

The team on Monday noted the lawsuit in an exchange filing. It listed on China's so-called New Third Board in November.

The unusually public dispute between listed companies in China over the club sponsorship began in November when the team switched the jersey logo to advertise Evergrande's insurance unit starting with the final game of the Asian Football Confederation Cup.

Dongfeng Nissan said in statement on its website following the match that it only received notice from the team one minute before kickoff.

Evergrande Real Estate Group and Alibaba declined to comment. Calls to the football club were not answered.

Dongfeng Nissan says the deal to keep its logo on the team's shirts was supposed to carry through to the end of January 2016, according to Xinhua.

The automaker requested compensation for 32 million yuan in economic damages in the suit, which was accepted by a court in the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou, according to Xinhua and exchange filings.

Dongfeng Nissan issued a series of statements on its website starting the day of the championship condemning the jersey switch.

In another statement, the company said it received a request from Evergrande Taobao in early November to switch the logo but had rejected the proposal.

Evergrande Taobao's stock exchange filing on Monday said Evergrande Real Estate Group would cover any losses that may result from the lawsuit and that the soccer club's finances would not be affected.

Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba paid $192 million for a stake in the team last year, in a deal hatched over a few drinks between co-founder and Executive Chairman Jack Ma and Evergrande's billionaire Chairman Xu Jiayin.